Abstract

Many tools developed for process modelling either
model client business processes or the software
development process itself. In both cases, benefits are to
be found by using the model to highlight real process
problems either of clients or developers. However, the
modelling of client business processes allows a further
opportunity for gain, where the intention is to build a
system to provide support for the process being modelled.
Although process models inform the requirements
process, by providing clarity and understanding at the
business modelling stage, the potential of such technology
is often lost in the subsequent development phases.
The premise of the work described here is to use
enactable state-based approaches, previously used
successfully in business process modelling and
simulation, to improve artefacts of requirements
engineering, by providing enactable versions of use case
descriptions. This allows for the kind of validation and
checking so useful to business models. In particular, such
models can be used to inform design, by providing
rigorous scrutiny of the (low-level) details of use case
behaviour.
The efficacy of this approach was gauged initially by
producing enactable equivalents of use case descriptions
using the existing process modelling language and tool
RolEnact. However, industrial application also found that
there was a mapping overhead and, hence, end users
were reluctant to devote their time to producing enactable
use cases without increased automation. This suggested a
pressing need for tool support. That is, a use-case
description tool which provided enaction capability, but
without need for any further description. A prototype use
case enaction tool is, therefore, introduced, along with a
discussion of development issues and possible future
directions.